Day of honor, remembrance

By PETER ELACQUA
Staff Writer

 Korean War veteran Richard Pender says veterans were called upon to serve their country and did so out of necessity. His American Legion post seeks new ways to recognize their service each Memorial Day.  STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER ERIC SUCAR Korean War veteran Richard Pender says veterans were called upon to serve their country and did so out of necessity. His American Legion post seeks new ways to recognize their service each Memorial Day. STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER ERIC SUCAR To some people, Memorial Day is a nice day off from work or school. To most, it’s a way to pay homage to those who fought and died for their country.

The holiday was originally known as Decoration Day, when flowers would be placed on the graves of soldiers who had fallen in battle. Today, Memorial Day is a celebration of those who gave up their youth and their lives to defend the Constitution of the United States. Towns across New Jersey have their own way of honoring those who have served. Many have parades where veterans march down Main Street. Some do things differently.

In North Brunswick, where the former Memorial Day parade was replaced with a service, the members of American Legion Post 459 decided to do something special for those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

“They were called upon to do a job and they did it. They acted on necessity,” said Richard Pender, senior vice commander of American Legion Post 459.

The post has been seeking out relatives of those who died in various U.S. conflicts. A segment will be held during the ceremony, which starts at 10 a.m. on Memorial Day, where a soldier’s name will be called and either a relative or stand-in will be presented with a folded flag. The flag will then be placed in a flag holder at Sabella Park, according to Pender. A continental breakfast will follow the ceremony.

“We have a different theme each year that has to do with Memorial Day, and we honor the people that should be honored,” Pender said.

Pender, who served in the Korean War, speaks regularly to middle school and high school classes and teaches students about history.

“We don’t look like Superman or Captain America — we’re just plain people,” he said of veterans.

“I never thought about doing my patriotic duty, but I was thinking that I have to help the guy next to me.”

Jamesburg holds the record for the longest-running Memorial Day/Decoration Day parade in New Jersey. This year is the 132nd annual procession for the town that sent one in 10 residents to fight in World War II.

Allan E. Brown, commander of American Legion Post 127 and a parade organizer, said the Jamesburg event features an interesting piece of history. Veterans will march with a coach that was owned by the town’s namesake, James Buckelew, and was used in 1861 to transport Abraham Lincoln to the New Jersey State House, where he would speak to the Legislature just prior to his inauguration.

Veterans from World War II and subsequent conflicts will ride on floats in the Jamesburg parade, which also features a Civil War re-enactment.

“The cheering from the crowd is unbelievable,” Brown said.

Brown served in the U.S. Navy from 1962 to 1968 and went on 15 patrols aboard a nuclear submarine. He said veterans of any war deserve to be recognized, and he believes one of the best ways to honor them is to attend the parade.

“I think it’s necessary to have a piece of history marching before their eyes,” Brown said.

Last year, Jamesburg built a monument with the names of more than 400 people from the borough who served in wars going back to World War II. Jamesburg also has a World War I monument, which was built in 1921.

“The biggest satisfaction I have is seeing a child point at a name and say, ‘There’s Grandpa’ or ‘There’s Daddy,’” Brown said.

“We honor everybody. They didn’t have to go to combat or die,” he said. “They could’ve been a cook in Georgia for all we know. They gave up part of their youth to serve our country, regardless of what they did.”

U.S. Air Force veteran John A. Donegan, who served from 1961-65, will lead Matawan’s parade this year. After his service, Donegan became a New Jersey State Police trooper, retiring as a sergeant in 1996. He said he worked with veterans from Vietnam and other wars during his time with the state police.

“A lot of people in Vietnam and afterwards were hit with a lot of criticism. I worked with combat veterans and I had a lot of respect for them for what they did,” he said.

Donegan also spoke highly about today’s servicemen and women.

“The veterans that are still serving today should be appreciated. I lived in a time after Vietnam when veterans had a tough time,” Donegan said. “Now we have a time where people are volunteering and should be honored. It’s an honor to represent them.”

Metuchen’s 88th annual Memorial Day Parade will be led by Fire Chief Rob Donnan. Born and raised in Metuchen, Donnan enlisted in the U.S. Army just after high school and served as a combat medic from 1985 to 1988.

“Today, a lot more people are respecting veterans, which is how it should be,” said Donnan, who is on the board of the Metuchen Area Chamber of Commerce.

World War II hero Ted Batko will be the grand marshal of South River’s parade. Batko served as a corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps, 3rd Amphibian Tractor Battalion, and fought in the Battle of Iwo Jima, where he earned the Bronze Star.

“Today’s Marines have a lot of respect for people that went through all that [fighting battles such as Iwo Jima],” said Batko’s wife, Charlotte. ”In my eyes, he’s a star.”

Memorial Day parades

Allentown
May 25 at 10 a.m.
begins at the corner of
North Main Street and finishes at
Upper Freehold Regional
Elementary-Middle School
Atlantic Highlands
May 25 at 11 a.m.
Municipal Harbor
Colts Neck, May 25 at 10:30 a.m.
Town Hall, Heyers Mill Road
Edison, May 24 at noon
Amboy Avenue starting on Walsh
Avenue to Brower Avenue
Englishtown/Manalapan
May 25 at 2 p.m.
Manalapan Veterans Memorial
County Route 522 and Taylor Mills
Road down Tennent Avenue, then
north on Main Street
Fair Haven
May 25 at 9:15 a.m.
Memorial Park
Farmingdale, May 25 at 10 a.m.
Main Street
Freehold Borough
May 25 at 10 a.m.
Main Street
Highlands
May 23 at 1 p.m.
Huddy Park to Veteran’s Park
Jackson, May 25 at 10 a.m.
Memorial High School to Justice
Complex
Keyport, May 31 at 1 p.m.
begins at Maple and Broad streets

Lakewood, May 25 at 10 a.m.
Clifton Avenue to All Wars
Memorial Amphitheater
Little Silver, May 25 at 8:30 a.m.
Parker Avenue to Memorial Park
Matawan
May 24 at 2 p.m.
begins at St. Clements Roman
Catholic Church
to Memorial Park
Metuchen, May 25 at 10 a.m.
Main Street
Middletown, May 25 at 10 a.m.
starts at Bayshore Middle School
Millstone, May 25 at 10 a.m.
Clarksburg Post Office
Oceanport, May 25 at 9:30 a.m.
begins at Blackberry Bay Park to
Old Borough Hall
Old Bridge, May 25 at 9 a.m.
Memorial School
Ely Avenue, Laurence Harbor
Plumsted, May 25 at 1 p.m.
Main Street
Rumson, May 25 at 10 a.m.
Forrestdale School to Victory Park
Sayreville, May 25 at 10 a.m.
Outlook Avenue
Spotswood, May 26 at 2 p.m.
Spotswood High School to Main
Street
South River, May 25 at 1 p.m.
Main Street to War Memorial
Building
Union Beach
May 23 at 1 p.m.
begins at Borough Hall

New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial

Memorial Day Ceremony
May 25 at 11 a.m.
New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Foundation
1 Memorial Lane, Holmdel